backyard birds

I have been observing mockingbirds quite a lot, and my attraction comes from the famous book. There is no mockingbird in my country of origin, or at least I don’t think I have ever met one.

It strikes me how brave they are. I have seen them face to face with raptors to make clear they will not allow them close to their nest. When I get out of my house to walk the dog in a common green area, they immediately jump near us and make their presence clear, to the point that my dog used to go back home clearly understanding the boundaries set by these birds.

The hummingbird is a small-medium size bird. Bigger than sparrows, of beautiful gray, black and white, clear yellow eyes and long tail. They can sing and scream a wide array of notes. They can also imitate sounds, like an ambulance, a car alarm or a cat. I have heard the car alarm. For this ability they remind me of sterlings. In England, a soccer game had to stop when a big group of sterlings started imitating the referee’s whistle.

In the image, a mockingbird showing high tail display, something they do to dogs, cats and humans. They raise their tail turning their back to you and look at you to make their presence clear. So get ready.

Photography was a hobby when I was in my twenties, and stopped when I became a mom. By then, DSRLs had replaced SLRs and I chose video, until I created my first Instagram account. Just one year ago I bought a book at the MOMA in San Francisco and I decided to take my camera again and do something different. Why birds? Because they are difficult to capture, and beautiful.